


The Little Things

by camichats



Series: Imagine James and Sirius Prompts [108]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Voldemort, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Marriage Proposal, Pining, Presents, Slytherin Sirius Black
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-31 01:34:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21036053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/camichats/pseuds/camichats
Summary: Sirius was miserable, but he was getting through it. James Potter showed up and decided that 'getting through it' wasn't good enough for Sirius despite the fact that they hadn't talked to each other.





	The Little Things

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt: “Slytherin Sirius who is attracted to James and is the only one who can prank him but does so secretly. Gets caught one day which leads to confession also sirius telling james about his family. Maybe a little angsty confession with eventual happy ending. Thank you.”

There were parts of Hogwarts that Sirius really liked. Being away from his parents was the biggest one, but pranking one James Potter was up there. Bloody king of Gryffindor, loved by all and a cliche to be so perfect. 

The downsides of Hogwarts were more than he could really count, and most of it depended on his mood. Having to deal with a bunch of blood purists spitting filth came to mind. The classes. The professors hating him. His dormmates hating him. Pretty much... everyone hated him actually, with the exception of Regulus and a few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws that he'd tutored in transfiguration. He couldn't wait to get out of this place. Out of the entire magical world to be honest. He loved magic, buggering breathed it, but the only escape from his family was to run off to the muggle world and he was going to do it once he graduated. Reg was the best thing about his life, and when he'd mentioned this plan, Regulus had said he'd visit. He'd called him mad first, but eventually he admitted that he would keep in touch. 

So yeah. Hogwarts life sucked arse, and all he had going for him here (other than his brother) was a fancy for James Potter, who probably knew he existed just so he could avoid him. Great and Noble Houses were like that, and Sirius being at the top of their year was just an extra tick up. James Potter knew who he was, he just didn't care. So Sirius pranked him for fun, made sure no one outside of Slytherin knew it was him, and had the time of his life. Somewhere between spiking Gryffindor table's pumpkin juice with firewhiskey and becoming an Animagus just to mess with him because of his Grim-looking form, Sirius had to stop other people from pranking James. Because where Sirius did it with (mostly) good intentions, some of those pricks were looking to hurt, and he didn't care for that shite in the slightest. Two more months. Two more months, and he'd graduate Hogwarts and be in the wind. He'd finally get to take the fucking Black Family ring off, and he wouldn't have to ever wear it again. All he had to do was keep on the way he'd been doing, and he'd be fine. 

So of course, everything went to hell in a Merlin spiral. He hadn't had time to put his hair up this morning, and he was having trouble finding his arthimancy notes, so as he was walking down the corridor he was rifling through his bag, holding quills inbetween his teeth as he tried to find the stupid thing. It was being a bit of an arse about the whole thing, but Sirius _ needed _ to find it and it wasn't showing up. 

And who the sodding hell should bump into him like that than James Potter, knocking him flat on his arse and scattering his items along the floor. "Shit," Sirius bit out. He was pretty sure he'd just bit his tongue while falling, so he'd be dealing with this for the next week or so, on top of however many times he wanted to think about the fact that James Potter had just run into him like so much rubbish. Well, except maybe it _ wasn't _ like so much rubbish because he was apologising now, helping gather Sirius's things. 

"Sorry mate, I wasn't even looking where I was going, I was just trying to get away from Filch." 

"Did you succeed?" 

"What?" James Potter asked, looking surprised that Sirius had said anything. 

He raised an eyebrow. "Did you get away from him?" 

"Oh! Yeah, just a bit of a run, he's not actually good at tracking me down. I didn't think he was good at catching anyone until Mulciber got caught with his trousers down," he snickered. 

That was because Sirius had set him up to be caught, but he wasn't going to admit to that. If word got around, his parents would probably send him a hexed letter for doing something to a potential ally-- even though he knew his parents thought the Mulicber's were idiots who were only useful as extra bodies. The Black parents were fun that way. "Yeah well. Ta." Sirius shoved everything back into his bag. Except for the notes he'd been looking for, which he shoved in his robes's pocket so he'd be able to find it again. 

He must have imagined the way James Potter's face fell, because what? "Oh right. Course. Sorry again for running into you." 

"It's fine," Sirius said, trying to find a quick way of getting rid of his quills without them snapping. 

Nothing was forthcoming, so James bloody Potter had the time to say, "You're a lot nicer than everyone thinks." 

Sirius looked up at him, confused. 

He shrugged. "I mean, I was half convinced you were going to threaten me for not paying attention to where I was going, and instead you're acting like I'm the one people are scared of." 

"No one's scared of you," Sirius said, because the thought was rather laughable. Although, there were a few arsehole Slytherins that probably were afraid of him since he'd been quick to draw his wand before he'd become Head Boy, but he wasn't going to mention that. "And no one thinks I'm mean," he added, rolling his eyes. "They don't think anything about me." He'd been pretty careful to not interact with anyone because if he talked to people, word could get back to his parents and then he'd be well and truly trapped. He was the heir to the House of Black, so sure, maybe people did have opinions about him, but it wasn't anything accurate. He got to his feet, throwing the strap of his bag over his shoulder. 

"Now that's a bloody lie," James said, also standing. "Plenty of birds talk about wishing they could shag you." 

Sirius snorted. "Talk to a lot of birds about me, do you?" 

"No," James said, too quickly and with the beginnings of a blush on his cheeks. 

Sirius paused. Really? James Potter thought he was pretty. He chuckled, adjusting his bag so it settled more comfortably. "Whatever gets you through the night, mate," he said, patting James on the shoulder as he started walking towards the Great Hall again. "Have fun avoiding Filch." 

* * *

The first time James ran into him, it was clearly an accident. The second time was clearly planned. His fake, too-loud, "Oops!" echoed through the otherwise empty corridor, and Sirius glared up at him from where he'd fallen on his arse. This was making a bad day worse. He'd be sore for the rest of the day, and he wasn't very pleased to be dealing with that on top of the stinging pain his arm was giving him every time he touched his wand. 

"Sorry," James said insincerely, offering him a hand up. 

Sirius grabbed his hand and gave a solid yank, pulling him down. He landed on top of Sirius, which probably hurt him more than it hurt James, but the surprised widening of his eyes was worth it before he toppled over. 

"What was that for?" James asked, trying futilely to untangle himself. Somehow their bags had gotten twisted around and didn't want to separate. 

"For knocking into me, you berk." Sirius punctuated his statement by shoving James, forcing him to fall to the side. 

"I didn't mean to." 

Sirius turned his head and slowly raised an eyebrow. 

James had the grace to finally admit that he'd been caught. "Sorry, I just- I didn't think you'd talk to me otherwise." 

"Have you ever tried 'hello'? I hear it's a great conversation starter." Worked for Regulus, if you took his word for it. Frankly, Sirius had his doubts. Any time _ he _ said hello to someone, they got all squirrely, but James probably didn't have that same problem. They both got to their feet, and Sirius gave his hand a swat when he tried to pick up Sirius's bag for him. 

"Fine I'll try that." A beat. "Hello." 

"Why are you being weird?" 

"You just said-!" 

"I said to _ start _ a conversation! We were already talking. Do you have any friends? I used to think you did but now I have doubts." 

"Of course I have friends." 

"Well go bother them," Sirius grumbled, storming off. 

Or at least he meant to storm off, but James followed after him. "What are you in such a piss-poor mood for? Yeah I could've just come up and talked to you, but I thought I'd save your reputation some damage from being seen with me. I thought you'd be fine with it since we were sort of getting on last time." 

Sirius was too exhausted to do a subtle work around that revealed nothing but got James off his case. Too bloody tired to deal with that shite. "Just fuck off." 

Instead of getting offended and leaving per what Sirius was hoping for, James stopped him with a hand on his arm, looking concerned. "Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine," Sirius said, trying to wrench his arm out of James's hand, but his grip was firm. 

"Do you need to go to the Hospital Wing? You sort of look like-" 

"Let me go," Sirius said, and this time he grabbed his wand, shoving the tip of it against the bottom of James's chin. He had to grit his teeth against the warning tingles of pain, but it worked, and James's slowly loosened his fingers until Sirius couldn't feel him anymore. 

"What's wrong with your wand?" he asked, still looking worried. 

"Nothing," he snapped, shoving it back in his robes. This time when he stormed off, James didn't follow him. 

* * *

"Not to put too fine a point on it," Regulus said, rubbing at his eyes tiredly, "but I don't think that giving him chocolates counts as a prank. It's just giving him a gift. You're allowed to give people gifts if that's what you want." 

"Oh shut it why don't you." Admittedly, buying a few dozen chocolate frogs to release in James's dormitory wasn't his best idea for a prank, but it was the only one coming to mind so he was going to do it. 

"Wouldn't you be better off pushing him against a wall and snogging him?" 

Sirius looked up and glared at him. 

"It would be easier than this, _ and _ less of a headache for me." 

"If you're going to take the piss, you might as well help," Sirius said, throwing a bundle of frogs at him. 

Regulus had a few options here. 1. Leave. 2. Keep complaining until Sirius threw more things at him. 3. Keep complaining but help so that Sirius wouldn't throw him out, _ and _ that had the added bonus of him not having to really move. Option number three it was. 

* * *

"Here," James said, shoving a truly pointy object at him. 

He put it against Sirius's chest and then let go, so Sirius's arms came up to catch it automatically, turning it so he could identify it. Belgian Honeydukes chocolates, very expensive and hard to get your hands on. Sirius blinked, then looked up at James. "What's it for?" 

"Eating, you pillock." 

"Why're you giving it to me?" 

"So you can eat it." 

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I got that thanks. I meant why are you giving me chocolates like we're a bloody couple?" 

"The chocolate frogs?" James said pointedly. "Nice spellwork there, but I figured this was more straightforward." He smirked, tapping the top wrapper. "Bit more clean too. Let me know how they are, yeah?" With that, he turned away and went about his day like he hadn't completely bewildered Sirius in less than a minute. 

Sirius watched him leave until there was nothing left to watch, then looked down at the gift. 

* * *

Sirius held up a bottle of firewhiskey with a grin. "Not as nice as yours," he told James, "but a good way to ring in your birthday." He jerked his head to the side, towards the Quidditch Pitch. "C'mon." 

James laughed and they immediately started walking. "Technically I should confiscate that, you know. I am Head Boy." 

Sirius sent him a sideways look out of the corner of his eye. "Technically you shouldn't be flirting with the Black Heir either, but here we are." 

"Here we are," James said, smile widening. 

It wasn't a long walk to get out to the Quidditch Pitch, and then it was just them, the grass, and the stars twinkling brightly above them. They made their way there mostly silent the closer they got, not wanting to be caught but both of them old hat with it by this point. The Quidditch Pitch was an overlooked rendezvous for students since they thought it was too open. The truth was that it was so dark that it wasn't easy to be spotted, and unlike in the stone corridors, noise didn't bounce around out here. Sound didn't really carry unless someone was yelling, and Sirius didn't think there'd be any of that this time. 

Sirius plopped down on the grass and broke the seal off the bottle. "So," he said, holding the bottle out to James after he joined him on the ground. "Any big plans with your friends tomorrow?" 

"The usual party. I know you're in Slytherin and usually aren't invited, but you can come if you like." James knocked their shoulders together with a grin. "It'd be nice to have you there." 

Sirius wanted to go; he'd always wondered what the other common rooms looked like, especially Gryffindor. The problem was of course, that he was a Slytherin. There was a reason he was never invited beyond the obvious point that he and James hadn't exactly had a talking-to-each-other relationship up until recently. "Nah, I wouldn't want to crash." 

James took a sip from the bottle, blowing out a smoke ring a moment later. He handed it to Sirius, who took a pull then-- because he was a showoff-- did a heart. After he did it, it occurred to him that maybe that was too heavy for the fun little celebration this was supposed to be. He could only do rings and hearts in smoke, and James had just done a ring. Therefore, a heart. It didn't bother James though, he just smiled and leaned against Sirius's side like they were old friends. Or perhaps new lovers. 

"What're you planning on doing after Hogwarts?" Sirius asked. Partly because he was curious, and partly because he was a masochist. It's not like James's plans were going to line up with his own. Thinking that sort of way was romantic hippogriff shite anyways. This was a school time romance, if that. 

"Quidditch," James asked, no hesitation. "Teams've been sending me offers. All I really have to do is negotiate with Puddlemere and I'll be set for the rest of my career." 

"Puddlemere?" 

"What's wrong with Puddlemere?" 

"Nothing, I just thought you'd go for a team with a little more history." 

James rolled his eyes. Sirius wasn't looking at him, but he knew it was happening. "Just because they're a new team doesn't mean they're not good." 

"Sounds like a ready-made excuse." 

"You're such an arse," James said fondly. "What about you? What are your big plans for after Hogwarts?" 

Ah. For some reason, Sirius hadn't expected for him to return the question. "I dunno," Sirius lied. 

"You do so. C'mon, I told you." 

"Promise you won't tell?" 

"I promise. Now what is this so secretive plan of yours? Going to join the Harpies so we'll be on opposite sides?" 

Sirius snorted. "No." 

"You'll come to my games, won't you?" James teased, turning to look at him. "I'll make sure you get good seats." 

"No I er, don't think I will go." 

James's little smile slid off, and he was left looking confused. "Why not?" 

"I'm not sticking around." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" 

"My parents and I don't... exactly see eye to eye. As soon as I graduate, I'm out of here." 

"Leaving Britain?" 

"Leaving the magical world," Sirius corrected. 

That got a bigger reaction out of James than the possibility of leaving Britain had. "What?!" He startled, spinning so that he was completely facing Sirius now. The sudden move threw Sirius off balance, and he wobbled for a moment before righting himself. "Are you joking?" He saw Sirius's expression and how clearly he was being serious. "You're not joking. What're you- I mean, _ why_? You and your parents don't see eye to eye, that's fine, just get a flat of your own for a few years, it's what I'm doing." 

"They wouldn't let me get a flat on my own." 

"Then you could stay with me! It's not like they can stop you from leaving the house, right? And okay, we're not the best of mates now, but that'll change, we could totally make something work." 

"James. It's not... it's not like that. It's not that simple. It's not a matter of getting out of the house and then I'm free to do whatever I want. I'm the heir to their precious Great and Noble House, and they're not going to let me have a life they don't control. Unless I get away entirely. If I fuck off to the muggle world, they won't _ want _ me back." 

"But you're their son. Why wouldn't they just let you be happy?" 

Sirius laughed without any humour in it. "If that's what your parents are like, cheers mate. You're the only one." 

"They can't be that bad," James said, but he didn't seem to sure about it. 

"Did you know I've got a family wand? I told them I didn't want to go to my cousin Narcissa's wedding, and they hexed it for a week so that any time I used it, it hurt my arm. I don't think me being happy has ever occurred to them." 

James looked horrified. "But that's- that's-" he made a noise of frustration. "You deserve better." 

"Well thanks, but that doesn't change anything." 

"But... you're leaving." 

"We barely know each other James. I'm sure as a professional Quidditch player you'll have plenty of people vying for your attention." Sirius would have kept talking, but that was when James kissed him. He tasted like smoke from the firewhiskey, and Sirius felt like he was going to get drunk on that alone. He didn't pull back, he just pushed forward and kept on until they were snogging, James sat on his lap like there was nowhere else he wanted to be. 

Sirius had no idea how long they sat there kissing, but a chill had set in everywhere he wasn't touching James and the massive clock tower striked midnight. "Happy birthday," Sirius muttered, and he felt James smile as he dived back in. "Mm, we should head back inside. We have classes tomorrow." 

"Who gives a fuck," James said, but Sirius wasn't engaging him anymore, ending their kisses with short pecks. 

"C'mon, we've got to get back." 

* * *

Sirius had to go home for a weekend to attend Narcissa's wedding. Regulus wasn't forced to go, but as heir to the house, Sirius's presence was required. James had tried to find a workaround so Sirius didn't have to go, but all his ideas would have ended with Sirius getting hurt. 

"Hullo love," James said, kissing the top of his head before sitting down next to him on the sofa they'd transfigured last time they came to this abandoned classroom and claimed it. 

"Mm." 

When James flopped on the couch to join him, Sirius winced. Then James noticed the arm he carefully had draped over his torso, like it was aching. "What happened?" James asked, immediately concerned and moving carefully to get closer to Sirius's side. 

"The usual. I mouthed off, Mother didn't take kindly to it, and out of the goodness of my heart I decided to not ruin Cissy's wedding." 

"Leave." 

Sirius startled. "You want me to go?" 

"Your _ family_. Leave your fucking family behind, they can't keep doing this to you! You're going to die because of them." 

"Don't be dramatic James, I'm not going to _ die_." 

"They keep hurting you." 

"Yeah hurting me in some sodding bid to change how I act. If they kill me, they're never going to change how I act." When he saw James's mulish expression, he sighed. "I like the thought James. Really, I do, but I only have to make it a few more months before I'm gone for good." He wiggled to the side, laying his head on James's shoulder. "Thanks for looking out for me." 

"Lot of good it's done you," James muttered. 

"It's done plenty, stop whinging." 

They didn't say anything meaningful for a while, bitching about homework and the upcoming NEWT's and some of the professors. James talked about Quidditch some more, and Sirius now knew more about Puddlemere United than he could ever want to. James was all glowy and happy though, so it's not like he minded. "Do you want to go to the muggle world?" James asked when there was a lull in the conversation. 

"What, right now?" 

James snorted. "No, after graduation. You said that's where you're going." 

"Yeah." 

"If you could stay here with your family leaving you alone, would you? Or would you still want to go to the muggle world?" 

"It doesn't matter because it's not going to happen." 

"Humour me." 

Sirius sighed, thinking it over. "If they'd leave me alone, I'd stay. But it doesn't matter, James. So long as I'm a Black, I'm theirs." 

"Yeah I know," James said, but the wheels in his mind were turning. 

* * *

Of all the things to happen at dinner, James Potter banging a box in front of him while he was sat at the Slytherin table was not something Sirius expected. "Er." Sirius blinked at it, then looked up. "What is this?" 

"Surely you recognise a present when you see it." 

"Yeah but it's not real clear why." 

"Stop being so bloody difficult and open it." 

"Er, alright." Sirius reached for it and was about to slide the bow off when he paused. "Aren't you going to sit down?" 

James was still standing opposite him, hands on his hips and a rather determined look on his face. "No." 

"O...kay." 

"Is it more chocolate?' Reg asked, peering over his shoulder in interest. "The last one was delicious." 

"It's a bit small to be chocolates." 

"Good things come in small packages," Reg said, swatting his arm in annoyance. 

"It's not chocolates," James said. To avoid more hitting because it looked like Sirius was going to say something back and he didn't want to deal with the fight it would escalate into. 

"It was obviously not chocolates," Sirius added, and Regulus started pouting, muttering something about how it _ could _ have been. The box could have fit a few good sized bars but the last ones James had given him were considerably bigger. If Sirius put his hands together side by side, he could cover almost the entirety of the box. He set the string to the side and tore through the paper in a single large rip that he tossed in Reg's face just to be an arse. Regulus was used to that, so the paper died in a quick flash of fire before it made contact. 

The present... well, it looked like a jewelry box, something that a necklace would come in. Sirius opened it. A necklace was nestled in soft black velvet, rubies shining in the patterned silver chain. The top of it was a choker, individual lines of braided silver dripping from the collar, getting longer the closer to the center it got. Bloody gorgeous is what it was, and it was far too easy to imagine what it would look like against his skin. He snapped it closed, face flaming. "Hey," Regulus protested since he'd closed it before he got a good look. 

"James," Sirius hissed, "what the hell is this?" 

"Well I thought it was pretty obvious," James said, frowning slightly. 

"What it is, is obvious. What is _ not _ obvious is _ why_. James, you can't just- you- oi!" Sirius snapped, saved from his fumbling when Reg stole the box from him and took a look. 

"Sirius, this is a betrothal necklace." 

Sirius reached for it, but Regulus held it out behind him so he couldn't get anywhere close. "Yeah I noticed thanks, now give it back." 

"Why is Potter giving you a betrothal necklace?" 

"A very good question." For the moment, Sirius gave up trying to get the box back and shifted to look at James. Regulus did the same, and James found himself the center of attention from more than just the two members of the Black Family in front of him. 

"You're proposing?" Reg asked. He turned to Sirius. "You didn't tell me it was that serious, what the hell." 

"That's because it's not," he hissed. "James, I appreciate... whatever the fuck it is you were trying to do here, but return the necklace before your parents find out and kill you." 

"Why would they kill me?" 

Sirius opened his mouth to explain that most people don't get engaged in school, and they certainly don't do it to people they've been dating for less than a year. 

"They already know," is what James followed it up with, and all that came out of Sirius's mouth was a squeak. 

"They _ what_? And they're okay with it?" 

"No offense Sirius, but how else would I have gotten that?" he said, gesturing to the necklace that was still in Regulus's possession. "And there's no returning it even if you say no. It was a custom order, I wasn't going to ask you to marry me with something pre-made." He made a disgusted face to show how horrible he found that idea. 

"Why are you asking me to marry you at all?" Sirius asked, because that was the heart of the matter, and it seemed to be the one question James was avoiding answering. 

"Because I love you," James said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, even though that was the first time he'd said it to Sirius. "We were talking the other night, remember? You sounded open to it." 

"Did I?" Sirius muttered, but his time for panicking about this was over. He'd become an Animagus for this guy, there was no way he was going to actually say no. "Give it here, Reg." He half waited for Regulus to give it to him and half snatched it out of his hand. "If you ever," Sirius said, getting to his feet, "do something like this again I'm going to bloody murder you." Sirius grabbed the front of his robes and yanked him in for a kiss. Over the table wasn't the most comfortable thing ever, but it was a short kiss so he didn't care. 

"Is that a yes?" 

"Of course it's a yes, you prick. Sit down, everyone's staring at you." 

There was so much about that that was wrong that Regulus's brain shorted out and he just sat there silently, not pointing out that people weren't going to stop looking if James sat. 

"Are you going to put it on?" 

"Aren't you supposed to put it on me?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Traditionally, but I'm on the wrong side of the table. I think if I tried to touch you right now your brother might stab me." 

"He would do nothing of the sort," Sirius said, giving Reg a warning glare that promised pain if he did decide that stabbing James was fun. 

"True, I have to save all my stabbing tendencies for anyone that wants to take the piss about the mess you've just made." 

"I didn't make a mess," James said, sounding affronted. 

Sirius didn't take a side verbally, but he pat James's hand all pitying like before going back to his dinner. 

* * *

Sirius tucked a finger under his hairline and swept it across, holding his hair up and out of the way as James put the necklace on him. It clasped into place, but James didn't take his hands away immediately, rubbing Sirius's shoulders for a moment. "Not too tight?" he checked. 

Sirius swallowed reflexively against the new weight, but it didn't feel constricting. "No, it's good." He let go of his hair and it fell back into place. He trailed a hand over the front of the necklace reverently. "Not that I'm complaining, but are you sure you thought this through? You're going to be stuck with me for a while." 

James hummed, wrapping his arms around Sirius from behind and resting his chin on his shoulder. "That was sort of the idea. The whole idea, to be honest. Getting you away from your family is a bonus. Well, family minus Regulus, I'm guessing?" 

"Yeah." 

"Problem solved." James turned his head, kissing Sirius's cheek. "Also, I know red's not exactly your preferred colour, but it's a Potter family one so there wasn't much I could do about it." 

"No, I like it. Red's good." 

**Author's Note:**

> This is from a prompt driven blog @[imaginejamesandsirius](https://imaginejamesandsirius.tumblr.com) on tumblr. Feel free to drop by!


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